Trade my CTR for WRX, looking for opinions

[aytaka]

Went WRX -> CTR. CTR is the better car in literally every way its not even comparable and I loved my WRX. AMA.

Sponsored

 

[idragmazda]

You going for a GTR or something more sensible?

I got to experience my friends Audi RS5 over the weekend... shit is FAST, comfortable, the transmission was nuts quick with shifts, and... I strangely prefer my car to it. An RS3 might be more of my calling though.. but I can’t afford one.

Working on getting into a 2012-2014 GT-R...we'll see!

 

[NapalmEnema]

Working on getting into a 2012-2014 GT-R...we'll see!

Just a word of advice on chasing teh GTR - look up maintenance costs along with what the car will cost. Lot of people don't realize how expensive those are to maintain, even if you do the work yourself. Good luck!

 

[TonyD]

I'll chime in here with a different opinion. I came from a 2012 STI that I used daily. It was tuned stage 2 with 325 HP at the wheels on the dyno. It was a great car and I miss it sometimes. I love my CTR as well, for all of the reasons listed here.

BUT I do miss the boxer rumble and how easy it was to mod and tune it
It handles new england weather like a champ and can drive up a mountain like a billy goat
Mileage sucked, maybe 22 -24 on a good day
Seats were terrible
I found the power to be nice and smooth. They are actually similar since the CTR weighs so much less.

I would not try and talk you out of an STI. I would not get a WRX. Make the jump and be happy with an STI.

 

[idragmazda]

Just a word of advice on chasing teh GTR - look up maintenance costs along with what the car will cost. Lot of people don't realize how expensive those are to maintain, even if you do the work yourself. Good luck!

Thanks, yes I've done a good deal of research and at the end of the day it can be reasonable if you find a clean car, with the right mileage, the right years (2012+), etc.

The most expensive maintenance items I see are tires, brakes, and transmission flush. And that is if you go with the OEM tires, OEM brakes, etc. If you go with a set of Michelin PS4S, aftermarket brakes, and do the transmission flush and oil changes at a non-Nissan GTR specialist shop (there are a few highly reputable shops near me), things are actually not THAT bad for what is (for all intents and purposes) a super car.

 

[breakingakajav]

As many others have said here.. CTR > STi > WRX.


The CTR wins on the seats alone, now once you start driving it's even worse for the rest. The STi/WRX has no changeable driving modes (suspension/steering, theirs is throttle response) and the stock suspension is abysmally firm. Then we get into the handling and neither of them can compare on dry. Tech wise, while we complain about the laggy infotainment system the Subie one is way worse and has more glitches. Styling, whatever that's up to you to decide.. Stoplight, well yeah the AWD wins and in wet/snow obv AWD wins. Idk, after being in all it was really easy for me to say the CTR is a better overall car, easily so at that.

 

[TonyD]

Seems like I've been hearing that since this time last year...

I bought my STI in 2012 even though there were huge rumors of a completely new platform for the first time in 20+ years.
Then again in 2013
and 2014
and 2015
and 2016

man this is getting old......

Nobody knows how to beat a dead horse like Subaru.

 

[aytaka]

I'll chime in here with a different opinion. I came from a 2012 STI that I used daily. It was tuned stage 2 with 325 HP at the wheels on the dyno. It was a great car and I miss it sometimes. I love my CTR as well, for all of the reasons listed here.

BUT I do miss the boxer rumble and how easy it was to mod and tune it
It handles new england weather like a champ and can drive up a mountain like a billy goat
Mileage sucked, maybe 22 -24 on a good day
Seats were terrible
I found the power to be nice and smooth. They are actually similar since the CTR weighs so much less.

I would not try and talk you out of an STI. I would not get a WRX. Make the jump and be happy with an STI.

Agree, WRX is a hard downgrade from CTR.

STI is where you can say yeah the CTR is objectively better but there are intangibles about the STI like the steering, the rumble, and the AWD system that would make me not question anyone who made that switch.

 

[samji]

If you are looking for more power, I don't think you should go either routes. I think the WRX would be a better daily with the kind of gearing and tune it has from stock (peak power comes on sooner), but I think you'll be disappointed from the power of the wrx even with a stage 1 tune. Once you don't have anything to compare it to after you sell your CTR, the WRX will become normal and all my buddies who own one say they're slow until you start modifying heavily. You're compromising reliability at that point and you'd save more money in the long run but getting something like a used mustang or corvette/camaro. If you have to have JDM, the ISF is actually pretty quick for what it is, and if you really want more after that, there are supercharger kits that can bring them well above 580whp. I think a lot of people assume subarus are quick and easy to make power because that was the case compared to what was available back then when they first were released in 2004 but now everyone has caught up with the 4 cylinder turbo template.

My personal vote would be a VW Golf, those things are what subaru's were back in the day. I think a mk7 Golf R can break 380whp with just a downpipe and tune. Add a new fuel pump and you can easily get to 400whp without any worries of your engine blowing up. Gti's are pretty easy to make power as well, you'll just be traction limited at times without the AWD.

 

[NapalmEnema]

Agree, WRX is a hard downgrade from CTR.

STI is where you can say yeah the CTR is objectively better but there are intangibles about the STI like the steering, the rumble, and the AWD system that would make me not question anyone who made that switch.

Anyone counseling anyone to get a motor with KNOWN design flaws that is ~15 years old is really doing nobody any favors...

I could MAYBE see the WRX with the newer 2.0 in it. But saying 'go get an STI?'

Come on man - most people in EVO's and the Type R and other similar vehicles came here from an STi failing them. Ringlands anyone? Head gasket?

I had a perfectly done 2008 STi - I did EVERYTHING right - only had Cobb work on it and pro tune it. POS head gasket went at 105k and warped the shortblock.

STI? I wouldn't buy that for someone I didn't like.

 

[krees]

Anyone counseling anyone to get a motor with KNOWN design flaws that is ~15 years old is really doing nobody any favors...

I could MAYBE see the WRX with the newer 2.0 in it. But saying 'go get an STI?'

Come on man - most people in EVO's and the Type R and other similar vehicles came here from an STi failing them. Ringlands anyone? Head gasket?

I had a perfectly done 2008 STi - I did EVERYTHING right - only had Cobb work on it and pro tune it. POS head gasket went at 105k and warped the shortblock.

STI? I wouldn't buy that for someone I didn't like.

Agreed. I wouldn't consider the current sti at all. I'd consider the new sti when it comes out in 1-10 years. The wrx is currently the better choice of the two.

 

[CivilciviC]

After almost a year with my CTR I still find it lacking. Even with Hondata 93 oct tune. I find I enjoy my girlfriends bone stock WRX a lot more. The CTR is only fun when pushing it. Normal driving it feels slow. Her car feels so much more responsive in daily driving conditions. A tune will make it even better. Also the steering in my CTR always feels like there's play on center. I always found this strange after all the praise it gets for precision steering. I still love the way it looks and it is a great car but it just needs a little more I guess.

Would a custom tune improve things a bit? Any idea if rigid collars will help the steering?

This is honestly one of the only times I've heard someone say they prefer a Subaru over the CTR when it comes down to driving experience.

I too strongly considered an STi before ultimately choosing the CTR. I was 98% certain I was going to buy a Subaru product.. until I drove them back to back.

Never looked at a Subaru again.

 

[CivilciviC]

Anyone counseling anyone to get a motor with KNOWN design flaws that is ~15 years old is really doing nobody any favors...

I could MAYBE see the WRX with the newer 2.0 in it. But saying 'go get an STI?'

Come on man - most people in EVO's and the Type R and other similar vehicles came here from an STi failing them. Ringlands anyone? Head gasket?

I had a perfectly done 2008 STi - I did EVERYTHING right - only had Cobb work on it and pro tune it. POS head gasket went at 105k and warped the shortblock.

STI? I wouldn't buy that for someone I didn't like.

I personally don't think having to replace the headgaskets at ~100k miles is that outrageous. Coming from a Honda V6 where I had to change the timing belt every 60k miles (because Canada) according to the owners manual, this doesn't seem that outrageous. That timing belt job is fairly labor intensive and takes the better part of an entire weekend for someone whos never done it before. And it's not cheap if you take it to a shop (though I have heard of the occasional Honda dealer that would do it for dirt cheap- but that wasn't common)

I would personally look to have the head gaskets replaced at 75k miles, just to be safe. That's many years of driving for me to get to that mileage and knowing head gaskets are eventually a common problem on Subarus, I'd do it out of precaution.

In terms of the engines gernading themselves- is it still an on going problem, as bad as it was a decade ago? I thought the number of failures has drastically dropped since when it was first reported on happening.

But here's the thing- we are on a Honda forum where we obviously see Honda bias. Go to a Subaru forum and I bet most will say none of these issues are a big deal- it's not like every second STi was needing an engine replacement. In reality, it's likely 1 in 20, or even lower, but the forums make it seem so much worse.

 

[PwrOfDreams]

Just buy what you want. Only you know what you need and what makes you happy.

 

[CivilciviC]

Just buy what you want. Only you know what you need and what makes you happy.

I know what I need and what would make me happy... Unfortunately, my bank account is nowhere near big enough to accommodate that

Sponsored